A Q&A with Reds president Nick Krall: 'It’s all about developing consistency.'

PITTSBURGH — On Monday night at PNC Park, Cincinnati Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall watched Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz crush a low line drive into right field for a base hit. Krall watched the way De La Cruz rounded first base.Earlier this season, De La Cruz might have tried to push for a double. But this line drive went right to Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder Connor Joe, and the Reds were trailing by three runs in the eighth inning. This wasn’t the time to take that chance, and settling for the single was the right move for De La Cruz.

“He’s making sure that there’s reasonable risk when he tries to stretch it,” Krall said. “He has done a really good job with that.”The Reds’ season has been full of moments where young players are making adjustments and learning as they grow up in the big leagues.

“It’s all about developing consistency,” Krall said.

On Wednesday, Krall participated in a Q&A about the state of the team, how the young core is developing, the plan for the trade deadline and more.

Seeing the team on the field this year, what’s the biggest thing you’ve learned about the group?

It’s been good to see certain guys make progress, especially the younger players. We’re a young team. We are trying to continuously improve. You’re watching guys go through the maturation process of what it’s like to be in your first or second or third full season. You’re seeing guys take steps forward.

It’s been a lot of fun to watch. We’d like more wins than we’ve got, obviously. But at the same time, we have a positive run differential. It’s been good to see the progress and the steps that a lot of players have made.

You’ve had an idea of what the team would look like, and that’s gone back for a couple years now. Have there been areas where your perspective of the group has changed, or things you’ve figured out about it?

You’re learning every day. You learn something new about your players and your process, and you refine that. I’m excited about what we’ve done and what we’ve set out to do. Build a sustainable winning organization. I feel like we’ve made good progress.

Are we there yet? Obviously, we’ve got to win more games. We’ve got to continue to develop players. We’ve got to continue to do a lot of things. I do feel good about the progress we’ve made. We’re moving in the right direction.

Looking back at your plan for this past offseason, how well do you think that has translated into the regular season?

I feel good about it. We had some holes, we tried to fill some things. Frankie Montas and Nick Martinez have done really well in their roles. Brent Suter, Buck Farmer and Emilio Pagán, before he was hurt, have done a good job coming out of the bullpen. They’re adding a veteran presence.

Jeimer Candelario had a tough first month, but he has been really good for the last six weeks. He has been an above-average offensive producer this year. He has been a really good stable bat for us and has helped stabilize our lineup.

The young guys have had some great stretches. They have also had some slumps and made some mistakes in the field and on the bases. Are the highs and lows part of the experience of a young team that’s figuring it out?

As a team, we’re trying to figure out how to develop consistency. Elly (De La Cruz) is on the young end at 22. The younger players are figuring out what it’s like to be in the big leagues. Whether it’s facing a guy with a good pickoff move, or being consistent at the plate or on defense. That’s a part of the process. Guys are going through that right now.

What do you think of Elly De La Cruz’s season as a whole?

What’s he on pace for? Hitting 30 homers and stealing 70 bags? Defensively, he has made some errors. At the same time, he has been an above-average defensive player because he can make plays that most players just can't make.

For him, developing consistency and staying within himself will be the biggest thing for him going forward. He can take bases. But if you watch him early in the season versus later in the season, he’s learning how to not take too much of a chance. He’ll pick his spot to do it, while also being able to run and steal a base. You’ll get thrown out running the bases. But he runs at such a high rate. He has done a really good job with that (right balance).

When you’re making big picture decisions with the team, how are you balancing putting guys in the best position to develop with putting the team in the best position to win in the very short term? Has that balance shifted at all this year?

It’s a constant conversation. Let’s say you have a younger player that you don’t want to be a platoon guy and you watch to give him some opportunities, or give a guy some leverage situations out of the bullpen. That’s something that we’re having a constant conversation about. How much leeway you want to give a guy.

You want to give a guy enough leeway to continue to improve. You also want to make sure you’re making the decisions that give you the best chance to win ball games and get into the playoffs.

The goal is to make the playoffs and win the World Series. You’ve got to keep that in mind at the end of the day.

How do you evaluate the strength of a young core at this stage? Individual statistics are a part of it, but that doesn’t paint the entire picture.

Some of the young core is not here and hasn’t been here all year. That’s a big thing. TJ Friedl has been here for, what, three weeks total this year? That’s it. Noelvi Marte hasn’t been here. Matt McLain hasn’t been here. Christian (Encarnacion-Strand) was here for a few weeks. It’s about continuing to develop and grow.

How do you feel about the strength of this young core?

These guys are just getting to the big leagues. For some of these guys, the sky's the limit. Look at Elly. He can go 30-70 (with homers and steals this season), and he has a lot of room to go. That’s incredible. I’m really excited about where we are.

What’s the team’s biggest need right now to take the next step?

It’s consistency. Specifically, it’s offensive consistency. Our offense has been up-and-down. It’s defensive consistency. Consistency is what we need across the board. You’ve got young players trying to develop that at this level.

We have the ability to score runs and the ability to play defense. We have the ability to pitch. Getting consistent in all facets is what we need to do.

McLain, Marte and Encarnacion-Strand have all missed a lot of time, and they all can hit for power. Do you see more power hitting potential on the current active roster, or is this group not as much of a power hitting group outside of Elly?

It’s important. I feel like it’s a work in progress. Taking consistent at-bats and being more consistent will lead to more power. You’ll get more balls in your zone to hit when you don’t chase outside of the zone. Better pitches to hit will lead to more power.

How much are you expecting from McLain and Encarnacion-Strand during the second half of the season? As you plan for the stretch run, how much can you bank on them coming back and hitting the ground running right away?

Right now, they’re not here. We’ve got to play with the players we have. Those guys need to rehab and continue to get better. I don’t want to put any stock into what a guy’s timeline is, especially coming back from a long-term injury.

Do you have to separate those two things: Injuries, and what the team could use at the deadline?

The difference between last year and this year with where we are right now is this. Last year at the trade deadline, you had Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo on their rehab assignments. We had guys coming back on those rehab assignments. Until that happens, it’s hard to say that you project this, this or that.

You have to have guidelines there. But you have to look at this team. This is where your team is. How do we continue to get better?

How similar will this year’s plan at the trade deadline be to last year’s approach, if the team is in the same position?

We’ll approach the deadline and say, ‘What can we do to improve this club? What’s the short-term benefit and loss and what’s the long-term benefit and loss?’

You factor everything in and figure out where you are. We’ve got to make the best decision for us from a short and long-term standpoint.

Is there more to learn about what this year’s team is before you make a final decision on how aggressively you’d pursue a player on an expiring contract?

At the end of the day, we’ve played well enough to be in a Wild Card spot. We’re not (entering Wednesday’s game). We’re slightly out. We’re still under .500. We need to continue to bank wins and get better. That’s going to be a big thing. We’ve got to continue to improve. We’ve got six weeks to do that. We’ve got to continue to move forward.

What would make a successful rehab assignment for Noelvi Marte?

It’s about where he’s at defensively, the quality of his at-bats and the consistency of contact. Are you ready to go? Are you not ready to go? We’ve tried to get him into as many game situations as possible. Now it’s about going to play and getting the timing back.

Just like we’ve seen with the team’s other young guys, is he another guy that will be hard to project what his year will look like?

He has 45 days in the big leagues. He’s a 22-year-old. He doesn’t even have as much experience as some of the other guys had last year. Whether he gets an opportunity or not will depend on how he plays and where he is physically. He has to come in, play well and earn a spot like anyone else.

Looking ahead to the No. 2 pick in the upcoming draft. You could add a guy who could be in the big leagues very quickly. How much does it matter what the team already has and balance that with taking the very best player available?

It’s about taking the best player available and getting the best players available in the minor league system and developing them to get to the big leagues.

You guys really have taken the best players available in recent drafts and been very aggressive with first-round picks. Do you feel like that’s an approach that has worked very well for you guys?

Yeah. Our job is to figure out how to get the best player available at every spot in the draft. We’ve got to figure out how we can take the best player available at each pick all through the rounds.

It’s not just drafting to get this (specific type of player) in the big leagues. It’s about taking the best player available. Even the best college players, look at how long it can take them to get to the big leagues. Like Nick Lodolo. Spencer Steer took a couple years to get to the big leagues. There’s still a development process. You can’t say that that guy is going to be in the big leagues basically right away.

In the draft, you have to assess who’s going to be your best long-term big leaguer and get that guy in the organization.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds president Nick Krall on next steps for Elly De La Cruz